Syrian top diplomat reassures Lebanese leaders on Beirut visit
Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani told Lebanon's president on Thursday that Damascus had no intention of intervening militarily in his country, despite U.S. pressure to do so, according to the Lebanese presidency.
Shaibani, who also invited President Joseph Aoun to Syria, is visiting Beirut, where he met parliament speaker Nabih Berri, a Hezbollah ally, for the first time.
U.S. President Donald Trump has repeatedly said that Syria could "take care of Hezbollah", criticizing Israel's strategy in its war with the Iran-backed militant group.
But Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa, who came to power in December 2024 after leading a coalition that toppled longtime ruler Bashar al-Assad, has stated that he has no intention of intervening or reopening old wounds.
Shaibani told Aoun he wanted "to clear up the confusion sparked by reports of a potential Syrian military intervention in Lebanon", adding that "Syria had no intention of undertaking such a move", the presidency said in a statement.
Shaibani also extended to Aoun an invitation from Sharaa to visit Syria, which would be a first.
After meeting Berri, Shaibani told reporters that he did not rule out the possibility of a meeting with Hezbollah in the future.
Shaibani said his discussions with Berri focused on ways to develop bilateral relations between Lebanon and Syria, adding that the Hezbollah file was not raised during the meeting.
Responding to a question regarding the possibility of a meeting with Hezbollah, Al-Shaibani said "if the mutual interest requires a meeting with Hezbollah, we are open to it."
Shaibani later met with Prime Minister Nawaf Salam, former Progressive Socialist Party leader Walid Jumblat, Kataeb leader Sami Gemayel, and Grand Mufti Sheikh Abdul Latif Derian.
After his meeting with Shaibani, Jumblat said "the defunct (Syrian) regime is gone, and we must open a new chapter of political and strategic relations."
Shaibani had previously visited Lebanon in October -- the first visit by a senior Syrian official since the Islamist coalition took power in Damascus, opening a new chapter in relations between the two countries.
Salam, for his part, travelled to Syria in May.
The new Syrian authorities are hostile to Hezbollah, which was allied with Assad, and have announced arrests of alleged cells affiliated with the group.
Hezbollah denies having any presence in Syria.
Since late 2024, Hezbollah's former Syrian supply routes have been cut and Damascus authorities say several attempts to smuggle weapons to Lebanon have been foiled.
The Syrian army intervened in Lebanon during its civil war in 1976 and exercised tutelage over its neighbor for decades, where it was accused of numerous assassinations.
Shaibani's visit last year broke the deadlock over the issue of Syrian prisoners in Lebanon, a Damascus priority.
Around 2,000 Syrians, nearly a third of Lebanon's prison population, are held in the country's overcrowded jails.
More than 250 prisoners were transferred to Syria following Shaibani's first visit.
Source: Naharnet, Agence France Presse
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